Intro - I typically put in about 100 domestic sectors per annum, and have "Gold" status on 9W/S2/IT as well as Silver on VS. In addition, I head a small tech company, which runs a lot of international travel mainly on the India / WCUSA route, for which we usually use SQ.
Of late, the "over Atlantic" route has become competitive too, and BA is amongst the most aggressive players here. It is also a simple case of survival, with over 50 flights a week to/from India, we are BA’s second largest long haul destination after North America.
So what’s the reality then, how does BA compare in India with BA elsewhere, never mind vis-a-vis other airlines?
a) Aircraft are all the same, usually, though there are specific configurations for Asia routes which place a larger number of Economy seats than on aircraft used on American long-haul routes. Means, your seat on an India route may be smaller/tighter.
b) BA does not provide a 24x7 toll-free number in India for their customers, unlike in USA and UK. They do have a very inefficient call centre which works sporadically, with long hold periods. I average 45 minutes.
c) BA does not provide details of fare break-up and taxes/surcharges for tickets bought in India, as they do in USA/UK. This is important, because these surcharges/fees/taxes can add almost 50% to the ticket cost.
d) Their Internet booking engine does not accept online payments. Instead, there is a strange and totally insecure method of passing your credit card number and CVV number over telephone, which has caused grief to me.
e) Getting a refund is next to impossible, unless you dedicate yourself to following up, and here too the call centre is absolutely unhelpful.
And finally, everything most visitors to mouthshut say about the overall attitude that BA has lately for or towards Indians is absolutely true. Partly because till about 25 years ago, for example, they had a strong monopoly on routes to/from India via the Persian Gulf.
My prediction is that BA will go the way the larger British shipping companies went. with their arrogance towards the Indian market, any amount of price cutting will not work. And not many of us are going to miss them, if the airlines from India simply put more aircraft on these routes.